How to remove dust from negatives?

[Doug A]

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Any thoughts on how to remove, or at least minimize, dust on negatives for scanning? I am using a Canon 8800F. I can load the negatives in the carrier and remove it from the scanner for access to both sides.

 

The old gentlemen who taught me how to enlarge in the early 60's ran the 35mm strip between his extended first and second fingers before he put it in the negative carrier. I did that too at the time, with pretty good results and no scratching, but thinking about it now it seems a little rough.

[richam]

I've had some limited success with my Arctic Butterfly. Designed for digital sensors, it seems to do a reasonable job picking up lint and dust. I mount the negatives in my Nikon 9000 carrier, spin it once then wipe once on the front a 6 frame strip, then spin and wipe again on the other strip plus the backs of each strip. (Did I say this right? That's 4 spin and wipe repeats for each 2 strip carrier -- more if I spot any dust).

 

However, I believe scanners are much more likely to cause their own dust problems than enlargers and their carriers. There are moving parts and sometimes cooling fans that stir things up.

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[adan]

Compressed air blowers, rubber-bulb blowers (some with brushes incorporated), anti-static brushes. Like Michael, I've used my Butterfly as well (which is sort of a pro-static brush - it has a little motor that spins the brush in the air to generate a static charge that ATTRACTS the dust and pulls it off the film or sensor - in theory).

 

Amazon.com: Kinetronics StaticWisk - hand held anti-static brushes for film, glass & acrylics SW-020 (3/4"): Camera & Photo

 

Scroll down through that page and you'll get an idea of what other kinds of tools people buy to get rid of dust on negs.

 

A lot of dust is skin dander, which tends to be sticky with, well, body chemicals and may require a liquid cleaner to remove.

[dubes]

Do you wear cotton gloves when you handle negatives? This is the first place to start. Cotton gloves and a Rocket Blower take care of the vast majority of my dust control needs--and I use an anti-static brush for the remainder.

 

Mike

[tobey bilek]

Do not rub you dirty greasy fingers on a neg. Nobodys are ever clean enough.

 

I use a past date static master or a Gilotos blower. Ilford sellls a AntiStatum Cloth that works well.

 

Whatever you use, keep it clean. Keep the scanner clean under cover, Keep the carrier clean in a plastic bag. I use mylar sleeves from Light Impressions for the negs which are kept in an envelope and then in a box. Keep the scanning room dust free with an air cleaner , same a darkroom where you dry the negs and immediatly cut and store. Prevention is far better than cure, Attack the problem at the source, not the end point.

 

Examine the frame to be scanned with a loupe after cleaning. A 00 brush from art store can dispatch a piece of dust or two.

[topoxforddoc]

I use Pec Pads, which I also use for cleaning my DMR sensors. I use a clean one or two for each session.

 

Best wishes,

[Doug A]

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Lots of good ideas here. The Butterfly sounds like an interesting gadget. I hadn't thought of the white gloves. I have a box left over from when our son parked cars at a very high end restaurant. Of course they're 20 years old so they might generate as much contamination as they prevent. Given that the dust, of whatever composition, has been on some of my problem negatives for almost 50 years the pec pads sound like a good idea too.

[MPJMP]

I settled on an Ilford Antistaticum cloth. A few light swipes of each strip before scanning seems to help, but still leaves a lot of dust behind that takes a long time to spot out in post.

 

The continuous battle to rid my B&W scans of dust and fine scratches has driven me to switch almost completely to C-41 chromogenic B&W film, namely Ilford XP2. I scan with ICE enabled and don't worry about it any more.

[hamey]

On occasions if I have stubborn hairs, dust etc I general place my Slides (without the mount) and Negatives under running water moving a cotton bud over it's surface that usually fixes the problem.

Leave them to hang and dry, with this method I have never had any problems over the last 15 years.

 

Ken.

[rob_x2004]

Research PEC12 photograhic emulsion cleaner.

Ive never used it but it was recommended in AP.

[ndjambrose]

Dust that's dried onto the negative has to be washed off - that's a whole exercise in itself. But surface dust and fibres can be removed with careful handling. This is what I've discovered from several years of scanning:

 

1. Don't use cotton gloves. Only very specific (and expensive) ones are lint free. 99% of cotton gloves are intended for handling prints, and will deposit fibres on your negatives as soon as you touch them. No point in removing dust if you replace it with lint, especially since lint is more visible on the scan.

 

2. Don't wear any kind of woollen fibres. Preferably wear cotton and short sleeves. I struggled with fibres on a flatbed that would never shift no matter how much blowing or sweeping....until I realised it was shedding from a woollen sweater each time I loaded the negatives.

 

3. Use a pocket blower to clean the negatives and the scanner glass. But it's best to do several empty blows into the air before using it. The bulbs usually contain fine powder residue and bits of perished material, and you need to expel both before blasting it all over your negative. Don't use aerosols or you'll get propellant all over the negative.

 

4. Dust the glass or sweep it with a negatively charged brush like an Arctic Butterfly. Load the negatives into the holder. Dust the holder and film strips from both sides. Place in scanner. If you're careful you'll have almost zero surface dust and fibres and may never need the clone tool again.

 

5. If dust drives you insane then consider a dedicated film scanner with a sealed housing and motorised slot loading. Saves a lot of time and grief.

Edited August 10, 2010 by ndjambrose

[christer]

Any household microfibre cloth that feels soft and is clean.

[dubes]

1. Don't use cotton gloves. Only very specific (and expensive) ones are lint free. 99% of cotton gloves are intended for handling prints, and will deposit fibres on your negatives as soon as you touch them. No point in removing dust if you replace it with lint, especially since lint is more visible on the scan.

 

This is not universally true. Lint-free cotton gloves are readily available in the U.S. I recall buying a package of something like 10 pairs for <$20 some years ago (haven't needed to replenish yet).

 

Mike

[richam]

This is not universally true. Lint-free cotton gloves are readily available in the U.S. I recall buying a package of something like 10 pairs for <$20 some years ago (haven't needed to replenish yet).

 

Mike

 

I had the same experience. Got a 10 pack from B&H as I recall.